A common assessment tool in inflammatory rheumatisms

Aims: Once the biologic therapies have been used, the present-day medicine trend is to homogenize the treatment of the inflammatory autoimmune rheumatic diseases, meaning rheumatoid arthritis (RA), ankylosing spondylitis (AS), psoriatic arthritis (PsA) and systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE). But, there is still the need to find out a common assessment instrument for this pathology.Methods:The study included 120 patients (40 patients with RA, 40 patients with AS, 20 patients with PsA and 20 patients with SLE). They were assessed at the beginning and at the end of the study period by using both DAS (Disease Activity Score) and HAQ (Health Assessment Questionnaire) scales. BASDAI (Bath AS Disease Activity Index) was used for AS patients and SLEDAI (SLE Disease Activity Index) for SLE patients. Results: The RA patients had significant improvements regarding both DAS and HAQ scores (DAS mean score was initially 4.49 and finally 3.75; HAQ mean score was initially 1.78 and finally 2.15; p<0.05). Important improvements were registered in AS patients (DAS mean score was initially 5.25 and finally 4.02; HAQ mean score was initially 2.24 and finally 2.57; BASDAI mean score was initially 4.28 and finally 3.21; p<0.05), in PsA patients (DAS mean score was initially 7.32 and finally 5.15; HAQ mean score was initially 2.1 and finally 2.51; p<0.05) and in SLE patients (DAS mean score was initially 4.4 and finally 3.45; HAQ mean score was initially 1.9 and finally 2.4; SLEDAI mean score was initially 24.7 and finally 12.5; p<0.05).Conclusions:Having in view that the DAS scale analyses complex aspects (clinical activity of the disease, its inflammatory lab evidence, patient’s general health status), as well as its good correlation to other specific disease scales, it can be used as a more widely assessment instrument in the autoimmune inflammatory rheumatisms.